Ten Hispanic families in which bilingual parents had chosen to maintain the use of Spanish in the home were interviewed. Explicit questions about rationales for this choice elicited answers related to instrumental benefits of bilingualism, but analyses of interviews as life stories revealed the necessity of repeated reaffirmation of this…

Draws on sociolinguistic literature and on an ethnographic study of language use and bilingual education in Quechua-speaking rural communities of Puno. Consider the roles of both language planning and the schools in achieving language maintenance for Quechua. (35 references) (Author/CB)

Describes the process for developing a bilingual curriculum for Guatemala's four largest Mayan language groups. The process took into account the Mayans' maintenance of a distinct linguistic and cultural identity. The results of this experimental curriculum and the current direction of bilingual education in Guatemala are discussed. (Author/CB)

Examines the scope of Portuguese language maintenance and ethnicity in and around Newark, New Jersey, and analyzes social and linguistic situations that demonstrate how the relatively homogeneous immigrant group responded to external stimuli (educational, media, religious, and social) regarding language, culture, and ethnicity. (CB)

Presents the case for the maintenance of Cantonese and Modern Standard Chinese in Australia. The article examines the numerical strength of the speakers, cultural dissimilarity between the dominant and minority groups, concentration of minority groups at focal points, interaction patterns of the minority group and change in Australian language…

Examines patterns of language choice and code-switching behavior in the discourse of 10 families whose primary home language is Mandarin Chinese. Study results are interpreted with respect to parents' and children's differential tendencies to accommodate their speech to their interlocutor, and implications for the maintenance of minority home…

Arguments for students' use of their first language as well as English in the English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) classroom are reexamined. Pedagogical and political aspects of ESL instruction are noted. (LB)

Reviews a book that emphasizes the role of families in maintaining minority languages and, ultimately, cultures. The book sees efforts to preserve and restore minority languages as societal reform efforts that lead to appreciation of other cultures as well. Three sections cover introductory considerations, case studies of threatened languages, and…

Observation of a maintenance bilingual (Spanish-English) program to determine its effects on majority language students found that fully English-proficient students enrolled in the program did achieve competency in Spanish and that their attitudes toward Spanish, second-language learning, and Mexican-American culture and community were strongly…

A study of variations in the English and Portuguese phonology of native English speakers who emigrated to Brazil found that all subjects suffered a loss of English proficiency, with Portuguese proficiency adversely affecting the degree of English loss, particularly in casual as opposed to formal speech. (64 references) (CB)

The consequences of economic integration for Europe's lesser-used languages are examined. Applying theoretical predictions to a set of 12 minority languages, this paper shows that 5 will likely be in a more favorable position, 4 may lose as a result of economic integration, and no clear effect can be predicted for the remaining 3. (18 references)…

The second part of a study on the defense of the French language (see Part I in the Winter 1992 issue) presents historical overview of the Quebec government effort of renewing, normalizing, and promoting the French language in that province. The controversial aspects and effects of Law 101 are examined. (43 references) (LET)

Historical, political, and sociolinguistic aspects of the teaching of English as a Second Language (ESL) in Puerto Rico are examined. It is suggested that the apparent failure of ESL instruction is in reality a motivated failure: a society's successful resolution of a conflict between government planning for bilingualism and social pressure for…

Two sociocultural value clusters that predict an English-as-a-Second-language and an English-as-a-Foreign-Language approach are juxtaposed, respectively, to English language acquisition management. The two approaches are described in educational terms and related to the changing functions of English in the world and to national language…

Reviews American educational policy and indigenous language loss, the importance of language revitalization, and various models of language-immersion studies. A case study reports on Papahana Kaiapuni, the Hawaiian language immersion program established in 1987. This program is an example of a native community's efforts to revitalize its language.…